THE WAY TO BEING
- An existential journey through Heidegger's
thinking on Being -
The philosophical work of Martin Heidegger
consists essentially of the questioning and
thinking on Being. As Heidegger is regarded by
many as one of the most important continental
philosophers of the 20th century, this is first
and foremost in light of his project of
fundamental ontology in the 1920's; the so called
early Heidegger. Sometime around the beginning of
the 1930's Heidegger's thinking takes a turn. To
an increasing extent Heidegger understands all
traditional philosophy, such as both ontology and
phenomenology, as a metaphysical thinking, that,
rather than explains, in fact conceals the origin
of the human existence, i.e. the Being of beings.
Through an extensive academic production, spanning
from the early 1930's to the late 1960s',
Heidegger's work consists in the attempt to
disclose Being beyond the realm of metaphysics.
This radical project results in a thinking that in
most ways transgress what we normally understand
as philosophy. Heidegger himself gradually opposes
the notion that his thinking can be regarded as
philosophizing; it is rather a thinking on being.
This thinking constitutes the so called later
Heidegger. The following thesis tries to unveil,
and give an account for, the enigmatic thinking of
the later Heidegger; it tries to disclose what
Heidegger understands by Being. The method of this
thesis we call a journey through Heidegger's
thinking on Being. The starting point of this
journey is however the main work of the early
Heidegger, Being and Time. We will argue that the
rudiment of the later Heidegger's thought, in fact
can be seen already in the grounds of Heidegger's
early fundamental ontology. Ascribing a clear
continuity to the whole of Heidegger's thought,
starting our journey towards Being itself, through
the detour of the fundamental ontology, we will
make use of the early Heidegger as a metaphysical
framework, better enabling us for the subsequent
transgression of metaphysics into the thinking on
Being within the later Heidegger.